WINGS Forum 2006: Satellite Meeting: WINGS CI

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WINGS Forum 2006 Satellite Meeting WINGS - CI

• The Value of Multi-Sectoral Partnerships and the
  Role of Associations/Support Organizations
• Bill King, Minnesota Council on Foundations 15
  November 2006
• Bangkok, Thailand

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About MCF

• Founded in 1969, Minnesota Council on Foundations
  is a regional membership association of 170
  grantmakers working to improve the vitality
  health of our communities
• Our Mission Strengthen expand philanthropy

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Membership

• The Councils Membership includes
• 170 organizations
• Community and Public Foundations
• Corporate Foundations Giving Programs
• Family Foundations
• Private Independent Foundations
• 1,400 staff and trustees

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Minnesota History of Multi-Sectoral Partnerships
with Business

• Geographically isolated, cold climate
• Business Founders contributed to buildling
  education, arts, parks and other amenities
• 17 Fortune 500 Companies and also large privately
  held companies headquarters
• Chamber of Commerce 5 Club
• Corporate Responsibility
• Corporate Civic Engagement levels are high

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Multi-Sector Partnerships

• Range from simple efforts of cooperation to more
  complex efforts of coordination and collaboration
• Minnesota Council on Foundations has done some
  work at all levels.
• The Association plays various roles and often
  partnerships happen naturally outside the
  association

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Types of partnership activity

• Cooperation
• Coordination
• Collaboration

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Cooperation

• Informal networks work together to support
  similar activities or organizations
• Low structure needs
• Power generally not an issue
• Educate each other build support among peers
• Decisions and action happens in each
  organization, independent of the others

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Cooperation Examples

• Member networks, information exchange and updates
• Early Childhood Education Network

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Coordination

• More formal relationships and alignment of
  missions of organizations that work together to
  achieve a common goal
• Some structure
• Power may be a factor
• Action happens in each organization, but they
  work together to coordinate activities

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Coordination Examples

• Summer Youth Employment Guarantee Fund
• Six foundations statewide efforts in economic
  development and early childhood
• Twin Cities Mayors Public Safety Task Force

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Collaboration

• Partners come together under a joint structure.
• Significant levels of planning and shared
  outcomes are designed into the work.
• Everyone brings resources and expects outcomes
  for the collective work and for their individual
  organizations
• The sum of the total is greater than the parts

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Association Examples

• Minnesota Futures Fund Welfare Reform Project
  mid1990s
• Minnesota Business Gives Promotion of
  Philanthropy Project 2001-Present

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Working in Collaboration

• Hard work, with many agendas to balance
• Takes resources to staff
• Requires significant amounts of time
• Goal setting and priority setting can be time
  consuming and difficult to gain agreement
• If any of the players leave, requires rebuilding
  relationships

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Regional Association Examples

• Ongoing Funder Networks, within the association
• Community Action or Development Initiatives
• Pooled Funds (Adult Literacy, Schools, AIDS, etc.)

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Associations/Support Org Roles

• Leadership
• Connect people of like interests
• Convene, communicate, coordinate
• Conduct or provide research and
  information

• Provide neutrality among players
  safe space
• Clearinghouse
• Motivate
• Report
• Celebrate

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Difficulties

• Financial and Staff Resources
• Time to work in collaboration
• Potential Change of players or their interests
• Gaining agreement on direction and outcomes
• Unequal power (real or perceived) based on
  partner organizations
• Keeping everyone moving forward on task
• Knowing when the work is done

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Final thoughts

• In spite of difficulties, cross-sectoral
  partnerships seem to be growing efforts
• Foundations and corporations are seeing their
  roles as much more than grantmakers and engage
  more at various levels of civic engagement
• Association needs some criteria for determining
  role in partnerships
• Consider levels of engagement from cooperation,
  coordination, or collaboration.

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Thank You. Questions and discussion